Posted by Administrator on August 10, 2011
This morning was a sleep-in morning so we didn’t have to wake up until 8:30am. Right now it’s
10:15am and we’re at Tara practicing. We’ll have a break for lunch, then an afternoon and evening concert,
both at Tara, and will be done at 7pm and ready for free time around the fair! The weather this morning is cool, some of us are in long sleeve shirts, and there’s a light breeze. It’s warmer in the sunshine, but the cool weather is a welcome change to the hot and humid days we’ve been having… we’ll take long sleeve shirts over hot and sticky any day! (It’s also better for the instruments!)
The band is still in high spirits and we’re on the home stretch of fair week; life is good! Come see us at the fair, and feel free to bring your favorite band members (or advisors) some sweets! Haha! J
Glad for the lower temperature today
—Meg.
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The march-around concert went very well, we played This is
My Country, Knock On Wood, and Land of 1000 Dances. The concert at Tara was very well attended
and the band sounded great. Toward the end of free time the sky darkened with storm clouds and streams of people
poured out of the grandstands and headed toward their cars in the parking
lots. Our kids did exactly what they were supposed to do—they headed back to the dorm where Council members reported
to Kayla if their charges were at the dorm and we accounted for everyone. Stephanie drove to the midway to pick up a
couple of band members who had taken refuge from the rain in the commerce building and had called to say that’s where they were, which is exactly what they’re supposed to do! J Everyone got back to the dorm and the worst of the storm went north of us, but we stayed in the dorm for the rest of the evening because the lightning was still prevalent even though the rain had
stopped. We went to bed without a friendship circle, but that’s ok because it’s important to be safe!
The truck pull was the main event at the grandstand, and many of the band members went to see the trucks, and the pull continued through the rain! They had stopped by about 11pm, which was good for us, as they normally keep us up with the engine noises
till after midnight. It was fun to sit on the front porch and watch the semis pulling the trucks in and out of the fairgrounds and pick our favorites!
Safety first!
–Meg
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Posted by Administrator on August 9, 2011
This morning was once again overcast, breezy and cool, but not it’s 10:45am and the gray clouds have been replaced by a bright blue sky with some fluffy white clouds. The temperature has risen but the breeze remains. We marched the same path as yesterday morning and the kids did a super job! We just finished lining up music for the evening concert and practicing the songs we haven’t played in a while that are in the program for tonight. After we put the instruments and chairs away we’ll have an Advisory Board meeting and then free time to grab lunch. At 12:45pm we need to be back up at Tara for our 1:00pm concert-on-the-move (aka mini-parade where were play and march). After marching we have quiet time in the dorms and most everyone takes a nap during that time! Then is time for supper and our evening concert starting at 6:15pm. Then a lot of the kids will go to the grandstand to watch the truck pull, while others walk through the animal barns or check out the rides on the midway or sit and play games outside the dorm. I’ll post more details later, but we’d love to see you here!
Alumni: Come see our brick alumni walkway in front of Tara and see Dannette to purchase your very own inscribed brick so you can be part of Tara forever!
We’re having a blast, but living at the fair and performing many times a day wears us out! Looking forward to nap time this afternoon!
—Meg
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The Council concert was so much fun! They played songs from the folder that we’ve played already this year, plus two “throwback songs” from our music library: “Gamelan” and “Pirates.” Their entrance was to Chariots of Fire and they all had a lot of fun on stage! After the Council concert we had free time and our evening concert. After the concert, some of the band members went to see the John Deere Girls and to hear Josh Thomas at the grandstand. From the front porch of the dorm we watched Josh Thomas’ blue tour bus enter and leave the fair. (That’s a plus about the dorm being right beside the exhibitor entrance—we get to watch the acts as they come and go! It’s fun to watch the classic cars and trailers full of livestock drive by.) We ended the night as we always do, with a friendship circle behind the dorm, and headed off to bed.
–Meg
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Posted by Administrator on August 8, 2011
This morning the weather was overcast and there was a slight breeze—all of us are hoping that every morning will be like this! It’s still humid but the clouds and breeze make for (relatively) wonderful weather in August at the fair! The flowers around Tara and the dorm are loving all the rain! We love the clouds while they last, but when the sun comes out it gets very warm very fast! Alumni reading this will remember fair weeks that were so hot they almost seem intolerable, weeks that were chilly and rainy all week (and marching through the sludge created by the mixture of rain and dirt and gravel on the walking paths!) and others will remember the few precious weeks that seemed like the weather couldn’t possibly get any better! This 2011 fair week has been a mixture, so we bless the cloudy, cool moments and grit our teeth through the humid hours. Overall, it’s nothing a big bowl of Velvet ice cream from the stand by Grubb Arena can’t fix!
Marching practice this morning was short and sweet: From Tara down the midway, around the flag pole twice, up the path behind the pavilion, cross across to the midway, and straight back up to Tara. The band was a little rusty at first, having not marched in formation since the Fourth of July parade, but they quickly remembered how to stay in line and turn corners, and they looked fantastic! We lined up music for the evening concert, making sure to line up folders for the band members who are not here this morning because they have to work or be at their school band practices, and now Council is practicing for the Council concert after lunch. It’s 10:30am, and they’ll practice for forty five minutes then grab lunch on the grounds before returning to Tara for their concert. In the meantime, the rest of the band has free time while the dorm sitters supervise the dorm and the tent/hang out area behind the dorm.
The council concert is always a highlight of the week because the Council often does some sort of fun entrance or skit before or after the concert. One year we played human tetris on stage while the percussion played cadences, another year Council performed an African dance taught to us by Janine Tiffe. This year is a surprise—come see it to find out what antics they’ll create for 2011!
Speaking of dorm sitters, a BIG THANK YOU to all the parents who have volunteered their time and taken time off work and away from their own lives to dorm sit for us! We really appreciate knowing that our dorm is in good hands during our concerts and practices and that we (band members and advisors) can always count on the dorm sitters for help. We’re all set with a roster of dorm sitters this year, but if you’d like to volunteer next year please see Advisor Stephanie Green early next summer to sign up for a two-hour shift.
The sun is back out and the gray cloudy have moved to make room for fluffy white clouds and it’s hard to see my computer screen from my seat in the grass in front of Tara, so I’m going to close for now, but hi from all of us!
Hope to see you here this week!
–Meg
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Council picked out some of the old music from our music library to temporarily reinstate for their Council concert Monday afternoon—but you have to come listen to hear what they are! (Tara from 1-2pm)
The concert at the Natural Resource center was wonderful—the scenery is beautiful! There was a good crowd and the slight breeze made the humidity bearable. Then we marched back to Tara and gave another concert (in our afternoon uniforms) and had free time until we met outside the dorm at 10:45pm for friendship circle. Several band members enjoyed watching the school bus races at the grandstand, and others took advantage of the bookstore under the grandstand that sells all sorts of books for very low prices! The storm that came through hit us just as we returned to the dorm from the afternoon concert at Tara, and the rain soaked the whole front porch of the dorm thanks to the wind! All the band members stayed in the dorm for about thirty minutes until the storm passed and the Advisors said it was safe for the kids to venture outside. Each band member got a free can of pop or bottle of water while they were in the dorm to thank them for cooperating so nicely and keeping positive attitudes! (Parents: Your kids are great!) The storm knocked down a couple of the section flags hanging from the front of Tara but Josh Reynolds and Advisor Dennis Dove climbed up on the roof and righted the flags.
All for tonight, come see us play tomorrow!
–Meg
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Posted by Administrator on August 7, 2011
Woke up this morning, Council checked beds to make sure they were clean, and everyone went to breakfast. Right now we’re at practice, running through our songs for the afternoon and evening concerts. After full band practice and lunch, the Council with choose the music they’d like to play for the Council concert and what sort of special add-ons they’d like to use to surprise the band and add some flare to their concert!
It rained at 4am this morning, but none of us heard the rain; Ken, the dorm dad at the main 4-H boys dorm, told us about the rain. The grass is still wet this morning, but not soaked; many of the band members are in flip flops this morning since we’re not marching right now. The skies are cloudy and it’s fun to watch the wind blow the clouds across the sky! There’s a breeze and it’s about seventy-five degrees out—perfect weather! We wish it could stay like this all week!
Fair officials put up the bleachers in front of Tara this morning so there are more places for our audience members to sit. We also have our red picnic tables placed in the grass in front of Tara, and sometimes fair-goers will bring their dinner or Velvet ice cream and eat while they listen to our concerts!
Being at the fair bring back memories of band friends and the awesome times we had at the fair—hope to see some of those friends this week!
Now it’s 10:40am, and in about an hour we’ll break for lunch. That’s all for now from the fair—stay tuned for more updates soon.
Check out the “documents” section of our facebook page for our daily schedule and concert times and locations.
Enjoying the cloudy and cool weather
–Meg
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After practice we dispersed and had dinner at the few places that were open since the fair doesn’t officially start until Sunday. At 5:30pm we met back at Tara and about 10 alumni band members joined us for practice! We played old favorites like Lemon Merengue, I’ve Had the Time of My Life, and Beautiful Ohio, and newer additions to the folder like Frankenstein, Wicked, and Born This Way. The alumni got a group picture after practice and had fun reminiscing about their times in band! We had some more free time for a late dinner or just to hang out with friends and grow accustomed to the layout of the grounds, then we reconvened at Tara where we played a game of “garbage” (which your band member can tell you about the fun band trivia they figured out in order to play!). We also sang some large group songs “Ride Your Pony” and “Jump Down, Turn Around, Pick a Bale O’ Cotton” and ended the night with a friendship circle. After those games, we went back to the dorm and checked each girls’ uniform to be sure their names were in each uniform piece and assigned a Council member to each band member. Each morning before the band members leave to go to breakfast, they sweep around their bed and pick up their belongings so their bunk and surrounding area is neat and tidy. Their Council member checks that their band members’ bunk are clean and lets them go to breakfast. Also, in case of a storm, each Council member is responsible for reporting if their assigned band members are present and accounted for, and if not, they call their cell phones and figure out where they are on the fairgrounds so we can make sure they’re safe. Storms rarely happen, but it’s good to be prepared! Safety first!
Ready for some sleep after our first full day at the fair!
–Meg
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Council ate breakfast together in the dorm and set up for registration. The band members arrived with their luggage and went through the registration line, checking that they have turned in any excuses for times they may have to leave during the week, turning in any medications to the nurse, etc. After receiving their ID card from Jane, band members set up their bunks and plugged in their fans to stay cool! Kayla Shortridge talked with the girls about the rules for fair week and JP Priest talked with the boys. It’s important to have this “dorm briefing” so the band members know what to do if there’s a storm or where to sign out if they have to leave, and to always have a buddy with them when there’re out and about the fairgrounds! Then we were free to go to lunch; most of us eat at one of three or four places on the grounds where we can charge our meals to an account and pay at the end of the week. At 1:00pm we started practice, and now it’s 3:00 and we’re almost done with practice. We’ve had several water and snack breaks—the favorite snack so far this week was a batch a chocolate muffins with chocolate chips in them! They were all gone by the time I got to the snack table, but they looked so good!
Parents: Remind your band member to take their ID card with them if they’re leaving the fair, as this is their re-entry ticket!
Soon we’ll break for some free time and dinner, and at 5:30pm we’ll practice again, this time joined by the alumni!
Come admire the new roof on TARA and see the newest bricks inscribed with Alumni names and messages that we put in the walkway.
Thankful to all the people who volunteered time who put the new roof on Tara
–Meg
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For many people, the fair begins on Sunday, but for the band, our work began weeks ago with a couple of work parties where we weeded the flower beds and the brick alumni walkway in front of Tara, put mulch on the flower beds, swept the dorm and the back of Tara, washed the curtains in the dorms, cleaned the bathroom (with toothbrushes where necessary!), and many other preparatory tasks! The biggest change was the replacement of the roof on Tara—it’s a durable red roof like the rest of the fairgrounds and is beautiful! Thank you to all the band members, families and friends who helped us put the new roof on our beloved building!
On Friday, some of the Council arrived at 2pm to put together the fairbooth and do more cleaning. (More on the fairbooth on Sunday after judging.) Other Council members arrived in the evening and moved the shuffleboard out under the tent behind the dorm where we hang out in the evenings and did other cleaning and setup tasks. We unloaded the trailer and put the percussion equipment, tubas, A/V equipment, podium, flags, music boxes, etc., in our storage areas. We had pizza for dinner, raised the flags and went to bed excited for the band to arrive tomorrow!
With anticipation of an awesome week
–Meg
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